My Eldest Cousin Essay Example for Free

My Eldest Cousin Essay Many people admire singers, movie stars, who make so much money that they could do everything they want and are famous. However, they don’t even know the person or their personality whom they admire. To me, admiration is a kind of respect. But there aren’t a lot of people who deserve this sort of respect from me in this world. Respecting my parents who raised me is the important thing that I have to do for the rest of my life. Besides my parents, my eldest cousin is the only person who made me look at things differently. He is two years older than me. His name is Khoi. I can remember when I was a high school kid. My family used to live in a rural town that was far away from my school. For convenience, I had to stay temporarily in my aunt’s house for studying. My aunt has only one son who is my eldest cousin. He has curly hair, tall with dark skin and his body was built with muscle. Those things made him look extremely strong. I could imagine that he is like a stone, like Bruce Lee. He was very good at sports. Read more:  Most admirable person  essay Playing basketball was his favorite one. Whenever he played, his team won most of the time. It was interesting to observe how extremely emotionally involved he was in the game. He had many fans in our school, many people liked him. I can remember one of his games. His team was down by three points and they had only five seconds left, he had the ball from a teammate and then he made a three pointer to make the game in a tie. They went over time. Finally, his team won by five points. After finishing the game, some of his fans carried him and ran around the basketball court for celebrating. Sport was always for him a source of fun, emotions, experiences, which are important ingredients in his spiritual life. Not only he was very good at sports, but also his knowledge was broad. He was the person who had the highest grades in the school. All teachers loved him, they always told us â€Å" Khoi is a good student, he deserves to be the person for you to learn from†. He did too great in the school. Consequently, few people hated him because they were jealous. Despite of the fact that he was a good student in our school, he wasn’t haughty. He always thought that he had to learn more and more every day even though he was only 18 years old by that time. At home, he was also a good son. He always respected his parents and elders. He helped his mother to clean house, wash dishes, mop floors more and more†¦ He also helped me on my homework, helped me whenever I got in troubles. Our neighbors liked him too. One of our neighbor talked to his parents and said â€Å"You have a great son, you must be proud of him†. His parents were very happy. My cousin never stopped learning new things. He always got advices from other people even though he had his ideas to solve his problems. He became a business man successfully after finishing his major. He was glad to help everyone who was in our family whenever we had troubles. He taught me about life experience and helped me when I got in troubles. For example, after a long day of work he was really tired and just wanted to go home and took a nap. Instead, he spent time and listened to me about troubles that I had. And then he solved the problems and gave me some advices before taking the shower. In conclusion, I admire my eldest cousin because he taught me about life, and tried to help me when I needed him. He is the greatest person that I’ve ever known. He is the person that I would like to learn from. He advised me that I need to treat people respectfully; I should not stop learning new things and try to help people if they need me. Otherwise, my life will be meaningless.

Craig Lockhart Essay Example for Free

Craig Lockhart Essay Wilfred Owen was a soldier in the First World War; in 1917 he was admitted to Craig Lockhart hospital with shell shock. He had previously written poems pre 1917 but whilst in the hospital he met Siegfried Sassoon; Sassoon had a huge influence on the way Owen wrote his poems. Owens main message in his poems was to warn the public about war, as well as dis-agree with other writers such as Jessie Pope and Rupert Brooke who presented war as noble; Owen was completely against this idea of war, especially the message these other writers tried to convey. In Owens poem Exposure the readers expectation is reversed; we expect the poem to be about exposure to enemy fire but what the men in the poem are really exposed to is the weather; this weather will eventually kill them as they die from hypothermia. In the poem the men are suffering from psychological trauma; projecting their own madness onto nature. The reader starts to sense Owens own questioning of his religion, Christianity, as he can no longer believe there is an after life and presents his theme of the futility of war. The opening of Exposure establishes the theme of psychological trauma, which is a reversal of the readers expectation because we expect the men to be exposed to enemy fire; this is the first thought the reader had when thinking about Exposure. The opening line of the poem is Our brains ache, which signals to the reader a new idea and a reversal of the original expectation we have and we sense the men are worried by silence, sentries whisper, curious, nervous. The word Our shows that collectively their brains ache and suggests the idea of the universality of war and the fact that on both sides, the British and Germans, many men suffered from psychological trauma. Another idea could be that the men are constantly worried (paranoia) about being heard or coming under attack, hence their brains ache with worry. Also, the use of sibilance throughout the opening creates an uneasy atmosphere and we can sense that the men themselves are uneasy; the sibilance creates a whispering sound; this constant paranoia surrounds the men that if they talk too loud they will die, which in turn creates psychological problems. This conveys the, perhaps uneasy, horror of war because what if affecting the men the most is not the constant Exposure to enemy fire but the constant fear that they are going to be shot at. Spring Offensive confirms Owens sincere lack of faith in an after life as he questions Gods existence throughout the poem. He suggests that the hundreds, perhaps thousands of men are not going to heaven as some would like to believe but simply just dying. The consolatory myth that many once used to believe is forgotten on the front line, as the men can no longer believe in the existence of such entity. Owen suggests that there is no Christian Heaven or Hell but that man have created a hell on earth; there is constant dying and murder yet these men do not go anywhere. This highlights that perhaps this is the most poignant horror of war, the futility of war. In Spring Offensive the theme of psychological trauma is again established in the opening stanza; the idea of the futility of war is also introduced. Many there stood still to face the stark blank sky beyond the ridge, shows that the men are perhaps afraid of going over the top for the fear that if they die they will go nowhere, no heaven or hell. Owens own fading belief in religion and an afterlife is introduced. The men in the poem are scared about what they are going to face when the go over the ridge (trench), as they have problems with what they are going to have to do when they go over the top of the ridge; they do not like the idea of killing over people. The use of sibilance is used in the poem, as in Exposure, to effectively create a sense of unease. This is a contrast to those who carelessly slept as they do not mind killing others in order to save themselves and at the end of Spring Offensive we learn that these were the ones who, eventually, survived. This perhaps suggests that they themselves have no social conscience in that they are quite happy to kill human beings like themselves and perhaps have psychological problems of a different kind. The stark blank sky could also, perhaps, be a link to astrology, with the idea from the past that the sky could show you what was in store for you in the future. A sunny day would suggest something good would happen to you and you would be fine, for example. However, the fact that they face the stark blank sky could be because they have no future, this is the end of their lives and that their own future is stark, blank; there is no hope of them going to the Christian Heaven or Hell, as Owen is trying to suggest that neither of these places exists, which strengthens the readers idea that Owen has a lack of belief in Christianity. The idea that the men are stood still is also a link to Exposure; the men are passive in the war in that they cannot affect what is going on, which also presents the theme of the futility of war. In the opening of Spring Offensive Owen successfully presents the themes of the futility of war and of psychological trauma and starts to establish his own belief that there is no such thing as Heaven or Hell in a subtle but effective manner. In Exposure the men project their own madness onto the wind and have a strong belief that nature, especially the wind, is against them; this comes from their psychological problems. Owen personifies the wind when he says winds that knive us and the men start to think of the wind as mad gusts, as well as suggesting that the bullets being fired at the men are less deadly than the air.

Nikes Marketing Principles

Nikes Marketing Principles Blessed from the mighty heavens by the Greek Goddess of Strength, Power and Victory read Nike; the brand has always captured ones imagination and strengthened its position among the upper echelons of marketing icons. Nikes marketing strategy draws your attention by interrupting you, attracting you, ensnaring you and finally and most importantly satisfying you. In a recent conference, Paul Knight , the charismatic founder and ex- CEO of Nike chose a divergent outlook to most other speakers on the subject of choosing Nike over competition. He asked people who run to rise from the comfort of their seats. He then asked those who run three or more times a week to keep standing. He looked on and exquisitely announced -We are for you. When you get up at 5 oclock in the morning to go for a run, even if its cold and wet out, you go. And when you get to mile 4, were the one standing under the lamp post, out there in the cold and wet with you, cheering you on. Were the inner athlete. Were the i nner champion. Just Do It is more than a tag line, its a motto. Its a cheer. Its a rallying cry. A sublime demonstration which augmentsmarket segmentation, fortifies positioning, empowersbrand building, and exemplifies relationship management in a snapshot, slowly and yet subtly hitting the sweet spot. The Story So Far More than 25 years ago, Co-founder Bill Bowerman used a waffle iron to conjure up a new sole for a pair of running shoes. Nike hasnt looked back since. Innovation has been the mainspring for a company exalting in its enduring success. With insufficient funds to indulge in advertising, Phil Knight and Bill Bowerman took to the streets, selling shoes at local athletic meets from the backs of their trucks. The word-of-foot gripped the sporting fraternity and marked the beginning of Nikes success on track. Then came the late 80s and with it the pain of losing out on sales to Reebok who introduced training shoes, tailor made for a growing breed health conscious women. In a bid to regain market share, Nike played to their strength and countered punched with new models of shoes designed for various sports. This was the phase when Knight and Bowman realized the importance of aggressive marketing coupled with product innovation and began to invest a princely part of corporate revenues toward s marketing and advertising. By the early 90s, Nike was ranked as one of the best advertisers in the world, soulfully striking ones emotional chords rather than the rationale ones. The Marketing Mix One of the key ingredients of the perfect marketing recipe comes by way of blending in the marketing mix. The key elements of the marketing mix are a set of interrelated entities which are set in unison with one another. (Proctor, 2000: 212). The marketing mix is a combination of the 4 Ps Product, Price, Place and Promotion for any business venture. Adapted from Exploring Business (Karen Collins) We shall evaluate the positive and negative impact of Nikes marketing mix in more detail. Product: Product is the companys offering via goods or services to the customer. A product can be viewed at three different levels: Adapted from Selling and Sales Management (David Jobber) Core Product It is the main benefit that the product offers to the customer. In the case of footwear, it is meant to protect and comfort the human foot whilst it is on the move Total Product (adding value) The chief aim is to ensure that customers purchase your brand. Nike has been a dominant player in the footwear market over the years. Their well-crafted design, innovative products, marketing and brand building activities have helped them gain a differential advantage over their rivals. Their packaging and labelling has been state of the art over generations. Augmented Product(Extended Product) The non-tangible benefits that the product can offer. This encapsulates customer service, after sales and warranty. Nike prides itself on excellent customer services with faulty products instantly replaced without any flutter. Nike warranty time is standard to current markets. Today, Nikes products are manufactured in more than 700 factories, employing over 500,000 workers in 51 countries. The company, through its Footwear segment, offers footwear products for men, women and children. Through its Apparel segment, it is engaged in selling sports apparel and other accessories designed for specific purposes. Under the Equipment segment, the company offers a range of performance equipment such as bags, socks, timepieces, sport balls, electronic devices. Other segment offerings are brands such as Cole Haan, Converse, Hurley, NIKE Golf and Umbro. Over the years, Nike has changed the way the game is played with its wide range of products. Nikes offerings have been in the ascendancy with the sales of 175 different styles of shoes in the 1980s springing to almost 772 different styles in the 1990s collections to a remarkable 1200 different styles showcased in the 2000 collection. Nike Air Max was the first line of shoes introduced in 1987 with frequent additions in the same product line over the years. The Air Jordan XX3 was its marquee shoe product designed for basketball with the contemporary issue of environment consciousness in mind. The Ansoff Matrix The Ansoff Matrix is a marketing tool developed to help marketers figure out the best way to grow their business via new and existing products and new and existing markets. The four strategies involved comprise of: (Kotler, 2006:48) Market Penetration Product Development Market Development Diversification Adapted from Marketing Management (Philip Kotler) Market Penetration Market penetration is built around marketing existing products to existing markets. Some of the techniques involved to increase revenue are promoting the product, professing brand loyalty etc. Nike has invested heavily in drawing up an elevated level of brand awareness to its omnipresent customer base by way of sponsorships, advertising and promotional activities. The company have significantly revamped their supply chain system which in the past has hampered their quest to meet global customer demands. They have also driven their retail based sales strategy to maintain their shelf space with enticing incentives. Market Development Market development focuses on marketing existing products to new markets. Some of the methods involved in capturing a new audience are exporting products, targeting a new market segment etc. Nike has effectively been able to expand geographically with their multifarious product offerings. They pulled off a masterstroke in 2003 signing up Liu Xiang, Chinas first gold medallist at the Olympics .This was followed by an advertisement showcasing his muscle and that of a nation with the trademark Swoosh on his shoulder. The result a walloping 66% rise in sales of its core products in China in what was the start of an intangible treasure hunt. Product Development Product development talks about marketing new products to existing markets. The capabilities here involve innovating new products to replace already existing ones. Nike has constantly been on the run with its technically advanced shoes time and again. The classic example is that of the Air Jordan Lines. There have been a staggering 25 major models of the product released over the past 25 years with variable designs and signature performance re-layers. Diversification Diversification thrives on marketing new products to new markets. It can be classified as related and unrelated. Related means remaining in the same market one is familiar with. Unrelated is delving into a new industry with no marketing experience. Nike has followed related diversification. The Prime example: adding the clothing line to its existing shoe operations. Nike has introduced a 3D soccer game available for download from their website which advertises their key products. This is targeted on a global scale at youngsters who gradually get associated with the product catch them young they say! BCG Matrix The Boston Consulting Group matrix is a chart designed to help companies analyse the performance of their business units. The market growth and market share dimensions provide a handy evaluation for the company on how to prioritize their product portfolio. Adapted from Perspectives on Strategy (Carl W Stern/George Stalk) Cash cows earn a lot of revenue and the onus is on stability strategies. In Nikes case, a vintage example is that of the Air Jordan sneakers. They exhibit low growth but already have a dominant market share. Stars are fledging businesses that thrive on accelerated growth of market share. Companies tend to reinvest their profits back into the business hoping to gain enough market-share to envisage themselves as cash cows. Nike has recently announced quadrupling their investments in apparel innovation and trends citing it as their biggest opportunity in the next five years. Nike has also developed its Nike+ products combining the best of both worlds superior products and technology. Question marks are new businesses whereby companies delve into expanding markets albeit with a low market share. Companies use share profits from other businesses to try converting a question mark into a star. Fitting example of a question mark in Nikes case are their recent watches and electronic products designed to capture more market share. Dogs yield low returns in a low growing market. Companies tend to employ turnaround and retrenchment strategies for their dogs or even dispose them off if they dont foresee a measurable future. The Nike brass decided to sell Bauer Hockey in 2008 in the event of tight margins in hard goods and a flat hockey market. Product Life Cycle Product life cycle explains the history of a product and the stages which it went through. It can be divided into the following stages: Introduction Growth Maturity Decline Introduction Stage: When a product is introduced, sales are going to be low till the customers become aware of the product and its benefits. During this stage, the companies will try to establish a market and build a demand for the product. Growth Stage: The growth stage is a period of quick revenue growth. Sales start increasing as customers start getting to know the product and its benefits .Sales will increase further as retailers express their interest in shelving the product. Maturity Stage: Maturity stage is the most profitable phase. Advertising expenditure will be reduced. Competition by other firms on similar products will be foreseen. The primary objective at this stage is defending market share whilst going hell for leather with profit making. Decline Stage: Sales gradually begin to decline because of a potential variance in customer tastes. The market reaches its threshold for the particular product. Decrease in sales leads to either less or no profit at all. Example Air Jordan Air Jordan, also simply as Jordans are a brand of shoes and athletic apparel produced by Nike originally designed for a very well known professional NBA basketball player Michael Jordan. The Air Jordan line is now sold by the Jordan Brand subsidiary of Nike. Since its first release in 1985, there have been new designs of the shoe released each year and have been making decent profits even after Michael Jordan retired from the NBA. Below is the Life cycle for this product. Life cycle curve of Air Jordan SALES Introduction Growth Maturity Decline TIME Nike introduced the first series of Air Jordan shoes in 1985, there were a multiple series released till date. The above graph illustrates the stages this product went through in product life cycle, which was introduced in 1985. It had a decent introduction, it reached the next stage i.e growth by 1992 and made a good amount of profit and reached a maturity state by 1998 and has maintained stability in this stage till date. Nike Hockey Sticks In 1994, the year Nike bought Montreals Canstar Sports, maker of the popular Bauer skates and other equipment, it then manufactured the series of hockey sticks between 2004 -06 in china. Random testing by health have found the lead in the sticks far exceeds the acceptable tolerance and because the sticks are used by youths, lead is especially harmfull. Approximately 100,000 sticks have been found to have dangerous levels of lead. Nike Bauer has issued a recall that takes the sticks out of the hands of youth and junior players. Below is the product life cycle for this product: Nike Hockey Sticks Introduction Decline SALES TIME The above graph illustrates the sudden decline of a product. Nike introduced different models of Hockey sticks for respective customers in American region in the year of 2008. This product has not gone through the stages which comes before the decline stage, since, quite before the product would start growing, it started to decline since the sticks were found harmful to be played with. Positive Impact: Nikes gift to the world lies in the comfort of mankinds happy feet. Creativity has always been Nikes forte and it comes as no surprise that they have toyed with the idea of customers designing their own shoes. Watching over the process of production of their creation adds to customer satisfaction and gives them a sign of belonging. Keeping abreast with technology, Nike has collaborated with Apple Inc. to produce the Nike+ product used to monitor a runners performance through a radio device in the shoe linked to the iPod Nano. . The cricketing fraternity has largely benefitted from the Air Zoom Yorker, devised to be 30% lighter than competitor shoes. Athletes have found the Nike Free edition to be a major boon with the design allowing foot muscles to gain strength by way of less constriction mechanism. Basketball players found the Nike Hyper dunk to be quite useful with its superior shock absorption techniques minimizing the impact of stress on the muscles. Customer satisfaction can be directly mapped to the success of the company. Nikes capture of market share with its diversified product range has seen its revenue shoot through the roof in recent years. Negative Impact Nike also had its fair share of brickbats with respect to its products. Its futuristic-looking hockey skates bombed in the markets during the late 1990s. The failure was deduced to be a result of rushing the product into the market before fully straightening out the probable design problems. A good 13 years after acquiring Bauer, and arrogantly making promises that it would revolutionize the business of hockey, Nike eventually sold its Nike Bauer unit to investors Roustan Inc. and Kohlberg Co on February 2008, an unassuming fall from grace for one of the worlds powerful brands. Though Nike Bauer was a market leader, it was predicted that the company would find it hard to recover even half the $395 million amount it paid for Canstar Sports, Bauers Montreal-based parent, in December 1994 mainly due to the stagnant hockey market. Nike as a company was built on the assertion that low cost and high quality running shoes could be imported from cheap Asian markets like Japan and sold in th e US. Nike felt the negative tremors as allegations were rife that they underpaid factory workers in Indonesia they sold shoes for around about $150 and paid the person making them a meagre 50 cents!.Along came the by-products of child labour in Cambodia and Pakistan and unsatisfactory working conditions in China and Vietnam during production. Recently, Nike has brought about winds of change towards its irrelevant practices and is also dedicating its efforts towards environmentally responsible business operations Price Price is one the key component which more or less decides the fate of a company. It is a return on efforts poured into manufacturing and marketing a product. Listed below are the various components of an effective pricing strategy (Proth and Dolgui, 2010: 101) Market- Skimming The process of Price Skimming involves setting high price for new products. The objective is to skim the revenues layer by layer from the customers who are willing to pay more to have the product sooner. Market- Penetration This involves setting low prices for new products in order to attract and penetrate the market in the initial stage of the launch of the product Competitive Pricing Prices in this strategy are set lower than that offered by the competitors or same price with the added incentives to attract customers. Premium Pricing Prices are always set high for a product or service to emphasize its exclusiveness. Economy Pricing This is a no frills low down price technique, since the manufacture and marketing costs are kept at a minimum. Psychological Pricing This approach is manifested when marketers wants the customers to feel that they are paying less. Prices are often expressed as odd prices, for example 99.99 cents not 100 dollars. Product Line Pricing This approach is mostly used by the marketer who has a wide range of products or services offered. The price is reflective of the benefits of parts of the range. Optional Product Pricing Companies offer to sell option or accessory products along with their main product. Captive Product Pricing This is the practice where the prices of a basic product are kept low to attract customers and the price of a companion product without which the basic product cannot be used is kept high. Product Bundle Pricing In this approach different products are put in the same package and sell them for discount. This helps the sellers to move old stocks. Promotional Pricing This approach is mainly used by the sellers who want to promote their product by attracting attention to the business. Typical example is that of a buy one get one free scheme. Geographical Pricing Geographical pricing is considered for different variations in prices in different parts of the world. Value Pricing Prices of a product will be based on the value it creates for the customer. This is usually the most profitable form of pricing, if it can be achieved. Nikes Pricing Strategies Nikes pricing strategy all comes down to understanding the products, competition, marketing the product and most importantly determining which price point is the best for their product .Needless to say, it is very rare that an organization makes use of all the above permutations and combinations in pricing techniques. Nike is no different with its pricing strategy revolving around penetration pricing, premium pricing, value pricing, skimming pricing and psychological pricing. Penetration Pricing Nike initially started out on the principle of penetration pricing so as to capture market share and then gradually increased prices. Premium Pricing As Nike exclusive products developed; it became recognizable to consumers in that marketplace. This drove its perceived value to a higher level especially with the limited editions of the Air Jordans. Value pricing Nike went about setting the price to the degree at which consumers place their value on the product. It is at this very point that customers associated themselves with Nike and paid the extra penny, as long as their products remained state of the art and exhibited the cutting edge. Psychological pricing Nike has priced their products to $99.99 (for example). After all in ones mind, a .99 is always cheaper than a .00. Skimming pricing This approach dwells on skimming market profits layer by layer. Nike has used this to good effect in setting high initial prices for the new design they bring into the market. This is then tailgated by a gradual decline in price as the design has been in the market for a while and a new product is on its way. Adapted from Principles and Practice of Marketing (David Jobber) Nike employs a rapid skimming strategy of setting high prices as well as investing heavily in advertising the new product. Generally, Nike shoes current season last for a period between 3 to 6 months where they are sold at peak prices. After that season, comes a process called closeout where prices are gradually reduced. The final stage is that of the inventory cleanout where a take all basis strategy is employed to sales. Nikes quality is directly proportional to its commitment of excellence. Excellence comes at a premium and fittingly so. This places Nike in the upper rightmost quadrant of the Price vs. Quality matrix. Nikes products are well worth their weight in gold. Positive Impact Nikes dominance in the market through its vehement promotional strategy coupled with a smart pricing function makes the market as a whole unattractive for competitors. In most cases, it has identified the precise price points across its range of products. The impact of Nikes pricing strategies can be seen in its overwhelming sales and profit margins (on a single pair of shoes!!!) as depicted below. Negative Impact Nikes pricing strategy has not always been quaint. The Air Jordan brand shoes were premium priced, released once every year in order to keep the value of the shoe as high as possible and make it a collectors item. However, this has prompted this line of shoe to be highly duplicated or imitated which has become a major headache for Nike with the virus spreading to the other products just as well. In 2003, the overpriced Air Jordans at $200 were biting the dust on store shelves as consumers shifted base to Sketchers (SKX ), K-Swiss (KSWS ), and New Balance shoes who slowly began nibbling away at Nikes heels. Nike has not utilised all the strategies of pricing. Each and every pricing strategy has its own advantages and disadvantages. Nike can venture into approaches like promotional pricing as an attraction tool for the customer by mentioning the word FREE. Nike can also utilize product bundle pricing by combining products (with a high and low demand) and selling them at a discounted price. Place (Distribution) Place pin points to effective distribution of products or services to the end customers. It is paramount for the organization to correctly estimate the needs and wants of the customers to meet its marketing objectives. Adapted from Principles of Marketing (David Jobber) Channel 1: Direct Marketing (No intermediaries) The direct marketing channel has no intermediaries. The company sells straight to the customers. Channel 2: Indirect Marketing (One intermediary) The first level of indirect marketing involves one intermediary. The company sells its goods to large retailers who in turn line them up for customers. Channel 3: Indirect Marketing (Two intermediaries) The second level of indirect marketing involves two intermediaries. The company sells its goods to wholesalers who buy in bulk and sell them to smaller retailers. Channel 4: Indirect Marketing (Three intermediaries) The third level of indirect marketing involves three intermediaries. The company sells its goods to agents who contact wholesalers who further sell to retailers. From the view of the producers, more number of levels leads to higher complexity and much less control. Nike employs the first two channels to good effect. Heres how: Nike -Direct Marketing By 1999, NIKE had opened 13 of their privately owned NIKE Town superstores located in high traffic upmarket surroundings. The first of those was a posh store in Portland which was soon bettered by a larger than life outlet in downtown Chicago. Nike also operated 53 outlet locations focussed on liquidating overstocked and outdated inventory. NIKE redesigned and overhauled their website incorporated with e-commerce functionality. A variety of products were put up for sale at full retail prices. Nike Indirect Marketing (Retailers) Nike operates 338 retail stores in the US and 336 stores worldwide. Retail stores in the US Retail stores Worldwide Nikes store formats include a mix of departmental stores, footwear stores, goods stores, tennis, skate and golf shops, and as well as retail accounts. Nike store are centrally located and easily accessible. The company operates three significant distribution centres located at Memphis, Tennessee and Wilsonville, Oregon in the US. Then, there are the leased distribution facilities which operate on a comparatively smaller scale in the home country. Nike also runs 14 distribution centres worldwide with Japan and Belgium among their prime locations. Subsidiaries NIKE also has global presence through several of its subsidiaries. The wholly owned subsidiaries include Cole Haan, Converse, Umbro and Hurley. Converse is engaged in designing, distributing and licensing of athletic and casual footwear, apparels and accessories. Cole Haan designs, markets and distributes luxury shoes, handbags, accessories and coats. Umbro is engaged in the designing, distributing and licensing of athletic and casual footwear, apparel and equipment for soccer under Umbro brand. Hurley designs and distributes sports apparel relates to surfing, skateboarding and snowboarding. Nike is developing high calibre information systems, logistics and a much improved supply-chain management system. In the good old days production was based on instinct. Nike used to take a guess as to the number of pairs of shoes to churn out and hoped to cram them on retailers shelves. Nike has revamped its supply chain management systems since the disaster to ensure the right amount of sneaker s find their way across the world more quickly. Positive impacts As Nikes market share grew, it buoyed merchants who carried their products. This helped Nike negotiate terms with retailers on location, display and inventory levels all of which contributed to the overall customer experience. NIKE Towns in Portland and Chicago became an instant hit with customers flocking in to witness the two-story wall painting of Michael Jordan and trying out shoes in the mini basketball courts. Souvenirs and other rarities were a showcase for the latest Nike had to offer and helped in brand building activities. The 53 stores opened up for liquidation served as a handy means for getting rid of excess inventory whilst maintaining control of the brand. Nikes re- launched website keying in on inspirational content as well as innovative products was met with a phenomenal amount of success. Negative impacts In the early days, Nike suffered from retailer inconsistencies. Imperfect information was received on inventory levels leading to stock outs and misallocations .The infamous i2 fiasco was a rap on the knuckles for Nikes brand image. It was made an example of as a company that botched up its supply chain unit. It was a deemed to be software glitch and the repercussions cost Nike more than $100 million in lost sales, leading to a depressed stock price by about 20%, which further went on to trigger a flurry of class-action lawsuits. Succinctly, the i2 demand-planning engine ordered for a surplus of thousand Air Garnett sneakers than the market had called for and a thousand fewer Air Jordans than were actually in demand. Nike looked at various operational workarounds but at best it was a classic case of damage limitation. The opening of the NIKE Towns and e-commerce applications was a cause of concern for Nikes traditional retailers initially as it would eat into their business. Nike all ayed fears by positioning their direct marketing strategies differently to the retail markets but doubts were still casted on the anomalies of this move. Promotion Compelling promotions and captivating advertisements are the cornerstones of a successful product in contemporary times. Listed below are the various components of an effective promotional mix. Advertising Nikes legend with television commercials dates back to October 1982 with the first advertisement broadcast during the New York Marathon. Wieden and Kennedy were the creators in chief back then and not surprisingly their partnership with Nike still holds fort to this day and age. Nike advertisements are very appealing and leave a long lasting imprint in the viewers minds. Public Relations Public relation is an entity that focuses on both brand building as well as defending. Nike has recently employed the green public relations strategy. This has been a powerful weapon in the corporate social responsibility aspect with environmental issues the subject of concern in contemporary times. Personal Selling Nike endorses the personal selling technique to good effect. Customer assistants in Nike retail stores have direct contact and constant interaction with the buyers of their merchandise. Nike representatives often train customer assistants on the latest in technology and merchandize. Sales Promotions Sales Promotions are driven around the accelerated purchase of products. Nike entices its customers with discounts, rebates and gift coupons. Direct Mail In the direct mail method, publicity material is sent to a customer within the targeted segment. Nikes concentrated efforts in recent times towards publishing its customer catalogues has been met with open arms a staggering 200,000 responses to the catalogue e-mail in 60 days. Internet Marketing The dot com industry has been an emerging trendsetter in ever growing and evolving marketing strategies. Nike has given volumes of ad space to its armada of products via a network of sites. Nike is accelerating Internet marketing campaigns to diversify extensively on the web. The impact of these promotional strategies can again be traced back to the profits at which Nike operates on. Sponsorship has been a key strategy in Nikes promotional activities. Nike endorses a galaxy of celebrity athletes across all sports. Michael Jordan was an absolute superstar for them in terms of publicity and sales. A whole array of national teams including the Indian National Cricket Team is under sponsorship contracts with Nike. News has just come in of Nikes win as the official uniform sponsor of the National Football League (NFL) for a deal worth a whopping $500 million. The Communication Model Adapted from Marketing Management Philip Kotler Nike has efficiently translated all the key factors in efficient communication. Through their marketing strategies, they have reached out to a plethora of audiences and gained a profitable response. They have encoded their ideas, coated them with creativity and pushed them through to be easily decoded by the receivers (custo

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee :: Free Essay Writer

To Kill a Mockingbird The theme of these two chapters is that Dill, and Jem wanted to go to the Radely house to get a peep at Boo Radely through the blinds. Scout feels uneasy about it but despite Jem’s wishes refuses to go home. He gets shot at with a gun while trying to escape. He lost his pants while escaping and when he went back to get them they where laid out on the fence like they where expecting Jem to come back. The next day every body was talking about it, they all thought Mr. Radely shot at a black man but missed. It seemed like Mr. Radely knew it was Jem though. Jem and Nathan Radley each said hi and Mr. Radely was talking about filling his tree with cement even though it was perfectly healthy. Jem found this strange. The protagonist in these chapters would be scout. She tries to convince Dill and Jem not to do it. Jem does not listen and tells her to go home, but she stays. Jem and Dill would be neither protagonist or antagonist of these chapters is Boo Radely because he is the main reason why Jem decides to go there in the first place. Scout is a tomboy who has a soft side. Even though she is rough and Strong, she is also a coward, like the time she wouldn’t go to the Radely house. She beats up the kids at school for example she beat up the kids for picking on her for liking black people. Scout is smart and trustworthy. Although most of the town is racist she thinks every body is equal. Jem is very brave, for example the time he went to see Boo Radely, and then when he lost his pants trying to escape, he went back for them even after the fact that he was shot at. He is smart but very stubborn, he wont listen to anybody because he always got to have things his way. Jem is strong, and persistent. He can sometimes be mean to Scout, epically after he met Dill. He isn’t racist and is kind and trustworthy. Dill is smart because he knows who to read even thought he is young. He is kind and open minded, he is not afraid to speak his mind. Dill is an open person, but he can be persistent. He is a smart boy but he can be very stubborn.

Comparing London by William Blake and Westminster Bridge by William Wor

Comparing London by William Blake and Westminster Bridge by William Wordsworth William Blake was born in London in 1757. He was taught by his mother at home, and became an apprentice to an engraver at fourteen. In addition to poetry Blake spent much of his time painting. Blake lived on the edge of poverty and died in neglect. His poetry receiving little acclaim while he was alive. ‘London’ was written by Blake in 1789. Taken from Blake’s ‘Songs of Experience’, the style is darker and in a sense depressing. It describes the city after the Industrial Revolution. Blake takes a very negative and hopeless view of the city and the lives of those living within it. He hated the way London was becoming, looking negatively on business and materialism. Blake felt himself as free, and the poem is a comment on others living in London. In the first line of the first stanza, he creates immediate effect as he contrasts the words ‘wander’ with ‘charter’d’, which he goes on to use to describe the Thames River in the following line. Wander suggests a sense of naturally meandering in an open expanse, contrasting greatly with the latter, which referring to the city itself, suggests a sense of narrow enclosed in space. This description leads the reader to envisage a regulated and constrained city, limited by business and materialism. Blake goes on to describe the ‘charter’d Thames does flow.’ This is ironic in the sense that any flow seems to be restricted by the banked in and concreted image of the river that the poet creates – there is nothing natural or beautiful about the Thames any longer. Equally Blake’s repetition of the word mark, while us... ...r for what she does in order to make a living. This is ironic because the business of prostitution is caused in part by the restrictions placed upon the married man. It is also ironic because the married man is what has created the need for, and use of prostitutes. The harlot curses the respectable and polite society because it is they who have created the demand for her, and then look down upon what she does. ‘Blights with plagues’ implies that perhaps she also infects them with some sort of sexually transmitted disease, conceivably as a type of vengeance upon those who shun her. The final words of the poem, â€Å"Marriage hearse† compares marriage to death. The narrator sees marriage as another type of restriction placed upon man by society, marriage is a sort of death in man’s ability to be free to do as he wishes.

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The Blind Watchmaker In 1986, Richard Dawkins, an eminent ethologist and evolutionary biologist, published a three-hundred-plus page refutation of William Paley’s watchmaker analogy. The writing itself is thorough, elegant, and forceful. Dawkins possesses what is possibly the most blunt yet poetic scientific writing style that exists, sometimes even quoting pieces of poetry and literature in his writings. While previous works such as The Selfish Gene and The Ancestor’s Tale were scientific masterpieces unto themselves, the insights contained in The Blind Watchmaker are among some of the most important and impressive ever offered by a human being. In writing this paper, it was difficult to decide exactly what to highlight; the book itself is dense, although that’s not necessarily a hindrance to its effectiveness. A good place to start would probably be Paley’s watchmaker analogy itself. To paraphrase, Paley asks you to imagine stubbing your toe in the middle of a grassy field. If you asked yourself how the stone got there, you might just assume it had always been there. However, if you were to stumble upon a watch in that same field, you would not assume the same. You would suppose that at some point in time, a watchmaker designed and created it for a purpose. Paley goes on to explain that â€Å"every indication of contrivance, every manifestation of design, which existed in the watch, exists in the works of nature† (Dawkins 5). To strengthen his argument, life is immensely more complex than a watch. The crux of Paley’s argument was the eye, and in his work Natural Theology he compares it to the man -made telescope. On its face, this appears to be a strong, scathing argument against the natural appearance of life, but the analogy begins... ...rking on randomly mutating, self-replicating creatures in order to create the variety and abundance of life on our planet is surely one of the greatest revelations mankind has ever produced. Chemistry and physics alone are capable of colluding and eventually creating not just life, but sentience, intelligence - no divine nudge necessary. That’s not to say that this idea is entirely original to Dawkins (David Hume was capable of constructing an argument against design by only philosophizing), but that doesn’t diminish the accomplishment this book represents. While many freethinkers out there disagree with his tactics and approach as a proselytizing atheist, he’s certainly earned a level of frustration. In The Blind Watchmaker, Dawkins has done all the footwork for us already. We need only open its pages and utilize the relatively large brains that nature has given us.

Poland Unemployment Rate Essay

Current : Poland’s unemployment rate climbed to 13.4 percent in December, from 12.9 percent the previous month, due to an economic slowdown and a seasonal loss of many outdoor jobs. The Main Statistical Office said Thursday that some 2.14 million people in this nation of 38 million were without a job at the end of December. Unemployment usually rises in Poland in winter, when outdoor jobs are lost due to snow and low temperatures. Additionally, Europe’s economic jitters have affected Poland, where growth is expected to slow to about 1.5 percent this year, from an estimated 2.3 percent in 2012 and 4.3 percent in 2011. Some industries, such as car manufacturing, have been hit by massive layoffs and more jobs are to be lost this year. History: Unemployment is one of the most serious economic and social problems in Poland. The unemployment rate has been growing successively in the recent years: in 1998 it was 10.6 %, and in 2002 almost 20%. That unfavorable trend changed in 2003. The biggest drop of the unemployment rate took place, however, in 2006 when the unemployment rate fell below 15%, reaching 8.9% in September 2008. It was the effect of an economic boom which brought more work offers and the growth of the number of working persons. In January 2012 the unemployment rate amounted to 13.2%. In an analogous period of the previous year the unemployment rate amounted to 13.1%. The characteristic feature of unemployment in Poland is its regional diversification, for example, in the Wielkopolskie Voivodeship the unemployment rate in January 2012 was 9.8%, and in the WarmiÅ„sko-Mazurskie Voivodeship – 21.1%. Problems with finding a job are experienced by young people, women and the long-term (over a year) unemployed. Public Employment Services (the network of voivodeship and poviat labour offices) are there to help and give advice to the unemployed and persons who look for a job in order to get an appropriate employment and to employers to find appropriate employees. Therefore, employment services provide a range of services, including: job agency, professional agency or help in active job seeking. Labour offices also carry out various programmes which support local or regional labour markets, register the unemployed and persons looking for a job, pay unemployment benefits, organise trainings in order to give the unemployed greater chances to find a job. The unemployed can take part in various activities which facilitate their professional activation, inter alia, intervention works, traineeship, on-the-job training, training loans, trainings or support for business activity. As of 1 May 2004 Polish Public Employment Services became the member of the European Employment Services – EURES. Labour offices carry out activities for EURES, especially, international employment agency along with advisory in the field of earning mobility on the European labour market. Having a little knowledge about unemployment, especially in the country that we are going to work, is useful for each of us. Sooner or later, we will have to think about it while looking for a job or changing it. When unemployment is low we have more chances to catch a good job, when not it is success when we catch any. Unemployment is one of the most important economic and social problem in Poland because in recent years, the unemployment rate has been steadily rising. During communism the official unemployment level was less than 1%, but some economists estimated that the hidden unemployment in state-ruled companies was about 50%. That mean that typically two people were doing a job which could be done by one person. Because of political and economic transformation (from a centrally planned economic model, to a free market system) after 1989 unemployment start to rising rapidly. In 1990 it was 6.1% and in 2002 already 20% (the highest unemployment rate historically). This unfavourable trend was reversed in 2004. The largest drop in unemployment, however, has been taking place since 2006, when the unemployment rate declined below 15%, reaching 9,5% in 2008 ( the lowest unemployment rate). This was due to the economic upward trend which produced more job offers and more active people. Because of financial crisis, in 2009, the unemployment rate increased to nearly 12% and to 12,8 in 2010. According to the newest statistics Poland’s registered unemployment rate rose to 13.2 percent in February from 13 percent the previous month. Unfortunately, is also higher than year ago. Labour Minister Jolanta Fedak thinks that the numbers are not too disturbing, however. She said that „The rise in unemployment is seasonal. It’s difficult to judge now [if the trend will remain]. We need to wait until the spring to find out,† She also predict lower unemployment rate at the end of this year but everything will depend on Poland’s economic growth in 2011. As you can see in the chart seasonal unemployment is characteristic feature in polish unemployment. It is connected with fluctuations of the weather and seasons. For example, in winter there is a high unemployment especially in tourist industry, building industry or agriculture. Unemployment in Poland is characterised by: Geographical differentiation: A strong differentiation is observed in the unemployment rates for various parts of Poland, with the highest unemployment rate for a single region standing at more than twice the figure of the lowest. e.g. in the WarmiÅ„sko – Mazurskie voivodeship the unemployment rate in February 2011 was 21, 5 while in the voivodeship Mazowieckie – 10%. The highest unemployment rates are primarily seen in regions dominated by the agriculture, mining and manufacturing industries. Unemployment rate by voivodships (at the end of February 2011). Selectivity: Polish unemployment is, first of all, is a problem of young people (below 35 years of age). According to Eurostat data 24,9% among unemployed people are young. It is because young people have often no experience on the job market, their qualifications are incompatible with employers demandings and they are not flexible enough. Difficulties with finding a job are also experienced by women and people over 50 years. People of this last group spent at least half of their life under the communist system so they are not well adjusted to the capitalist system. They are unwilling or they do not have a chance to re-educate and move from their home to the areas where more jobs are available. Unemployment among young people in Europe Period of unemployment: unemployment in Poland tends to be of a structural or long-term nature. As we can see in the chart there are 34% of unemployed who cannot find a job above 12 months. This in turn has an impact on the health and well being of large segments of society. The forecasts predict that joblessness in Poland will stand at 9.9 per cent by the end of 2011, before steadily declining to 8.6 per cent by the end of 2012 and to 7,3 at the end of 2013.